?? Strongest Lever Action ??

[Kevan]

With your take on the strength of the '86 action and I believe the 71 was an upgrade of the '86, how would you say the strength of the 71 stacks up? And the next improvement to the '71 being some of the most recently produced copies, with upgrade/improvements in metallurgy, where would you say they fit in strength wise?

I remember reading an article about Harold Johnson the man responsible for the 450 and 50 Alaskan and in it he said the '86 and M71 were more or less equal strength-wise and in spite of the fact that he converted many M71s, he actually preferred the later 1886 because they had a very slightly different taper at the top of the locking lugs and were less prone to popping open after firing.
Personally I've never desired to load any of mine to the level that might cause that...

 

[Johnn Peterson]

I remember reading an article about Harold Johnson the man responsible for the 450 and 50 Alaskan and in it he said the '86 and M71 were more or less equal strength-wise and in spite of the fact that he converted many M71s, he actually preferred the later 1886 because they had a very slightly different taper at the top of the locking lugs and were less prone to popping open after firing.
Personally I've never desired to load any of mine to the level that might cause that...

You & me both. I plan to leave my deluxe 71 chambered in 348WCF and keep the reloads within acceptable specs.

 

[Kevan]

You & me both. I plan to leave my deluxe 71 chambered in 348WCF and keep the reloads within acceptable specs.

Mine is a deluxe also and they are a fine rifle to reload for with either cast or jacketed. I nearly bought a 71 in 450 Alaskan about 20 yrs. ago from a chap in Bellingham, that is until he said the recoil broke his collarbone when he slipped making a shot on an Elk.

 

[Wilson]

I remember reading an article about Harold Johnson the man responsible for the 450 and 50 Alaskan and in it he said the '86 and M71 were more or less equal strength-wise and in spite of the fact that he converted many M71s, he actually preferred the later 1886 because they had a very slightly different taper at the top of the locking lugs and were less prone to popping open after firing.
Personally I've never desired to load any of mine to the level that might cause that...

From my experience with the 50 Alaskan was glad the tapered lugs allowed the action to open probably would not be able to have kids if it did not
BLR's are definately strong only saying the 86 and 71 are damm strong too and maybe in a class of thier own in tubular mag. category of lever actions.
I still own two 71's and will be leaving them in thier virgin cartridge designation personally enough recoil for me

 

[John Y Cannuck]

I believe that for a " true " lever gun the Marlin is the strongest,
full house load's in 45-70.
Just my opinion.

A few years back, I made the reloaders mistake of letting a friend shoot some of the max loads I'd made up for my custom Winchester 1886 (on an original action) in his Marlin.
Thankfully his rifle was undamaged. It did lock shut to the point he had to open it with a block of wood.

Up to that point I thought the two rifles to be fairly equal in strength.


WRT the old front locking is stronger argument:

I think that in rifles of comparable weight, and thickness of steels it's true. However, there are very likely front locking bolt guns out there that are not as strong as for example the 1886 Winchester. It's a very heavy action. Combine that with modern steel, and it's hellishly strong. So is the little '92 Winchester, and the 99 Savage.
I think most failures on these lever guns are barrel failures, not action.

 

[Demonical]

After looking at several videos, plus reading articles online, I'm kinda leaning toward the M-1886 (and of course the M-71) as the best lever action ever, followed by the M-1895.

The genius of the M-1886 actions, locking lugs; a fantastic design.

 

[Matt74]

After looking at several videos, plus reading articles online, I'm kinda leaning toward the M-1886 (and of course the M-71) as the best lever action ever, followed by the M-1895.

The genius of the M-1886 actions, locking lugs; a fantastic design.

The genius of John Moses Browning. Where most of Winchesters best designs came from. A true firearms genius.

 

[bogie]

I own both the 1886 45/70 as well as the Savage 99 308. Liking both and glad to see I have bought the right things. The savage is my fave truck gun DM and all. Kinda liking the Miroku stuff too. Not shabby at all and easy on a leftie.

 

[shoshin]

BLR +1

But... isn't a BLR really just a bolt action rifle that happens to activate with a lever?

It's not REALLY a lever action then is it?

(And then the fight started!!)

 

[burnt_servo]

BLR +1

But... isn't a BLR really just a bolt action rifle that happens to activate with a lever?

It's not REALLY a lever action then is it?

(And then the fight started!!)

if you follow that reasoning , then the savage 99 is just a tipping block action activated with a lever , similar to the ag42 ( hakim and rasheed ) , sks and many other rifles ....

my vote goes to the blr too

btw i was under the impression that the blr was more closely related to browings semi auto than their bolt action ........

 

[bogie]

Then again in its simplest terms it is an action operated by a lever. Hence the name "lever action" would still apply. And they are fairly beefy too. Im ok with that. I like almost all of the lever actions even the single shot ones.

 

[burnt_servo]

Then again in its simplest terms it is an action operated by a lever. Hence the name "lever action" would still apply. And they are fairly beefy too. Im ok with that. I like almost all of the lever actions even the single shot ones.

funny ...... i never even gave a thought to the single shot lever actions .................

is it too late to change my "vote " from the blr to the ruger #1 ?

 

[bogie]

And how about the mighty Henry Martini action? There are a lot of smiths that like to barrel those with nasty big buggers too. My fave 22 is a BSA Martini Model 12 takedown with a very heavy barrel and a Marbles tang sight. Tack driver and a delightful gun to shoot. Still the 9422 is very pleasant to shoot too as most of the lever 22s are. Owned most of those at one time or another.

 

[hoytcanon]

BLR stands for,best lever rifle,bar none!Enough said I would think.

That would be a BLRBN...

 

[Claybuster]

Then again in its simplest terms it is an action operated by a lever. Hence the name "lever action" would still apply.

On that basis the clear winner is the Ruger #1.

 

[Demonical]

Falling block actions, like the Winchester M-1885 or Ruger No. 1 do not count in this discussion.

 

[gtrussell]

clear?Prolly not to most.

On that basis the clear winner is the Ruger #1.

Clear, to an unclear!Two different actions.

 

[Northern Boater]

Along with the tapered lugs on the 71 which allowed the lever to open with less force than the 86 lug design with higher pressure loads, there is also a change in the ejector design, the 86 ejector runs right to the firing pin, while the 71 is modified so the area around the pin is solid. The 86 design allows the primer to expand into the ejector area. The current production 86's have the 71 style bolt face.

 

[torontogungal]

What is the strongest lever action ever built?

I ask this question because today I was in WSS and a guy there proclaimed it to be the M1895 Winchester; I'm kinda skeptical about this. I know it is a strong action and can handle high-intensity rounds such as the .270Win and .30-06, but then the Browning BLR will handle .300WM.
So my immediate reply was, "Bulls**t and how do you prove that?", which the guy did not answer.

I'd really like to know if there are certified tests that have been conducted, as opposed to just 'opinions', but feel free to share opinions too.

I'll restrict my answer to generic off the rack guns that I've shot.
The BLR which is really a lever actuated bolt action handles some high pressure magnum cartridges.
The Rossi 92 action handles the 65K psi of the .454 Casull cartridge.
The 2 that I mentioned if not the strongest are certainly "up there".

 

[torontogungal]

Along with the tapered lugs on the 71 which allowed the lever to open with less force than the 86 lug design with higher pressure loads, there is also a change in the ejector design, the 86 ejector runs right to the firing pin, while the 71 is modified so the area around the pin is solid. The 86 design allows the primer to expand into the ejector area. The current production 86's have the 71 style bolt face.

The 1886/71 is the parent action that the 1892 action was based on and both have the characteristic vertical locking lugs that give the action it's great strength.
Turnbull Manufacturing in the USA makes a 1886 action in the massive .475 Turnbull caliber which is used to hunt elephant in Africa.